Tennis Elbow?

[sunvalleylaw]

This spring I started developing some pain on the end of my forearm where it connects to the elbow. This was after cross country skiing and chopping some wood, then it went away. I stupidly chopped a bunch of wood a couple/few weeks later, and it kicked it off again. Now it has been nagging me off and on since. A physical therapist friend took a look and said that I have tennis elbow, that it is not uncommmon. He also says guitar can aggravate it, and I do notice sometimes it flairs up a little after playing.

He gave me a stretch to do a few times a day, advised ice (which I have been doing some but can do more), and said it will go away eventually. I can also go get a shot which may provide some relief, but of the symptoms only. Not a cure. Anyone else deal with this? It is aggravating. I realize as I write this that I am probably just being impatient, but . . .

[oldguy]

That's what I was diagnosed with at first...... then, when my ring and little fingers started going numb I had several tests done. It turned out to be cubital tunnel syndrome.
Had it fixed and no more problems. The nerve damage isn't reversible, but it's not going to get worse, so they tell me.
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/thum_1154b41f9aef0c01.jpg (http://www.thefret.net/vbimghost.php?do=displayimg&imgid=1444)

Best of luck, and I hope yours turns out to be no more than tennis elbow, and you get it resolved. It is a real bummer when it interferes with the guitar playing

[DrumBob]

I've had tennis elbow a few times. I took Ibuprofen and it eventually went away, but I did have to play a couple of gigs basically as a one-armed drummer because of the pain. I played one-armed as much as I could during the gig and it wasn't too hard. No big fill-ins.

[sumitomo]

I feel the pain Sun,I fix cars,so I work no matter what(I'm getting to old for this crap)Stretch the muscles,ice and a little celebrex.Warm up with stretching before playing guitar,sports,work ect.(I hope this doesn't bite me in the rear)I haven't had any problems for over a year.Sumi :D

[ZMAN]

Tennis elbow is a repetative motion tendon injury. It is caused by the tendons in your arm rubbing against the bone. You have done something repeatedly over and over again that has caused it to chafe. I have had it from hockey and golf practice. Heat will help, but the amount of heat you need will burn the skin.
Ultra sound therapy works well. BUT the only way to cure it is rest. You can get a special wrap that keeps the tendon in place and stops it from rubbing, but that usually doesn't help much.
After playing sports for 50+ years I have had it several times, and it just takes time and rest. It will go away.
Oh and ice is good to keep the swelling down right after an injury, but heat will bring blood to the area and promote healing. Trust me on that I have had ultra sound therapy and I asked how this helped. The therapist told me that heat is generated by the sound deep in the tissue. You have to be careful and not over do it. I used a heating pad and it helped a lot.
And be careful when lifting things with that arm. You will hit a spot and the pain will be so bad you will drop the item.

[sunvalleylaw]

Thanks guys. ZMan, good advice. I learned to be very careful lifting my skis this spring (big, tall, heavy and tend to twist the arm in a way that hurts like you say), and have even been careful with hand shaking. Some guys grab hard and twist in a way that can hurt if it is aggravated. I am doing my stretches, icing some, etc., and also trying to avoid things that aggravate it. I now lift my guitar with my left more, and generally have been using this as an opportunity to become less right dominant. I have not yet tried heat, and will look into that. I am also using some supplements.

I think the repetitive action might be using poles for skiing. Nordic is what first set it off, but also alpine. I tend to pole as though I am skate skiing them too. And I have had a habit of extending my pole action as though I am doing a distinct tricep press. Maybe a bit too extended I suppose. If I over extend and add weight, I can feel it for sure. Sumi, I am with you, gotta work on, and i am not planning on stopping anything entirely unless I am forced to. Just adjust.

Thanks again for the thoughts guys.

[ZMAN]

I hate to harp on this but you can't "work" your way through this. You have to stop doing those things that cause the inflamation/chaffing of the tendon.
It will take months. I am not sure about how late you ski out there but that is probably what is dong it. I would put it to rest until next season. I would definitely try a heating pad. I use it when I am watching TV for a half hour every couple of hours. You will see a marked difference. Been there done that.

[Katastrophe]

Yep, Z has good advice. I had tendonitis in my left arm once a long time ago, from swinging an axe at a job over and over. The only thing that made it go away was rest and time. Once healed, I watched my body mechanics and it hasn't come back since then.

Repetitive motion injuries are a pain, and are hard to get rid of. Hope you heal quickly!

[sumitomo]

Thanks Zman,I learned some more on this.I feel another LONG vacation is needed.Away from wrenching on cars,Dr.Z has ordered it.AMEN!!!! Sumi:D

[Tig]

Rule of thumb for soft tissue injuries: Ice the first 24 hours, then heat after that.

[sunvalleylaw]

I hate to harp on this but you can't "work" your way through this. You have to stop doing those things that cause the inflamation/chaffing of the tendon.
It will take months. I am not sure about how late you ski out there but that is probably what is dong it. I would put it to rest until next season. I would definitely try a heating pad. I use it when I am watching TV for a half hour every couple of hours. You will see a marked difference. Been there done that.

Skiing is done for the year, unless I go hike up high, which I don't really do. Though we have a bunch of construction wood to chop up for fires, I am going to have the boys do that, and watch for any other stuff that aggravates it and avoid those things.

[PFHupp]

I developed pain in my left elbow (my fret hand side) last summer. I had been playing my acoustic guitar a LOT, and it was steadily getting worse. I did some digging and found a post on an acoustic guitar forum that confirmed my suspicions of tendonitis. I found this link, http://www.nismat.org/ptcor/tennis_elbow/ to some info on the condition and suggestions for simple physical therapy. You won't need any fancy equipment to do these.

I eventually went to a doctor to get it checked and was given an anti-inflammatory, a brace to immobilize the wrist and a set of physical therapy exercises. The exercises were almost exactly what I found on the above link. I takes a while, but be patient, it will get better.

[ZMAN]

Thanks Zman,I learned some more on this.I feel another LONG vacation is needed.Away from wrenching on cars,Dr.Z has ordered it.AMEN!!!! Sumi:D
After playing sports for most of my life I have had one injury or another multiple times. Hockey, Soccer , Footaball, Slo pitch, golf and martial arts have all taken their toll. I still play hockey twice a week in the winter from September to April even at 63. If it wasn't for ice, heat and Ibubrofen I couldn't walk.
My daughter played for our Canadian National Soccer team and majored in Kinesiology at the University of North Carolina, and is a high school PE teacher today.
With all the Physio, and doctors appointments I have been through. (Gotta love national health care) and the advice (nagging) from my daughter I can say that I am a semi expert on injury rehab. LOL.
The other option you have is power ratchets. A compressor and air tools make up most of my home shop. I couldn't live without them.
BTW have you ever noticed how DR. OZ has Spock ears LOL